The present invention relates in general to the slide r ail assemblies for drawers, cabinets and equipment racks, and in particular to a slide assembly having a latch with a front release.
Slide rail assemblies have been provided for use in furniture, cabinets, equipment racks, server system racks, and such, in which drawers, equipment units, work surfaces, and the like are extendable from within the furniture, cabinets, equipment racks and server system racks. The slide rail assemblies typically have at least two telescoping members, which include a forward slide rail and a rearward slide rail. The rearward slide rail is typically mounted to a cabinet, equipment rack, or the like, and the forward slide rail is telescopically extendible into a cantilevered position, disposed forward of the rearward slide rail. The forward slide rails are usually mounted inward of the rearward slide rails, such that the outwardly disposed slide rails are mounted to the cabinets and the inner slide rails are mounted drawers which extend forward of the cabinets. Prior art slide rail assemblies have included both friction slide rail assemblies and bearing slide rail assemblies. The friction slide rail assemblies typically each have at least two telescopically extendible slide rails which include tracks that define mating bearing faces for slidably engaging, such that one of the slide rails is extendable to cantilevered positions with respect to the other of the slide rails. The bearing slide rail assemblies have at least two telescopically extendible slide rails, except unlike the friction slide rails, the bearing slide rails include moveable bearings, such as ball bearings, roller bearings, and the like.
In some applications, the forward slide rails are latched into forwardly disposed positions with respect to the rearward slide rails. Prior art slide rail assembly latches are typically released by users pushing on portions of the slide rail assembly latches at the forward junctions of rearward and the forward slide rails, to release the forward slide rails from being latched in forwardly disposed position. The forward junctions between the mating slide rails often provide pinch points at which the users may be injured when operating such prior art slide rails. When prior art slide rail assemblies are used to support large drawers or large equipment racks in cantilevered, forward positions, it is often difficult for the users to simultaneously reach around opposite sides of the large drawers or equipment racks to simultaneously release the slide rail assembly latches on the opposite sides, making the slide rail assembly installations more difficult to operate and increasing the chances of injury to the users by having fingers or hands caught in the pinch points between the telescopically extendible slide rails.
A slide rail assembly is provided having first and second slide rails, with the first slide rail being telescopically extendible from the first slide rail. A latch is provided for releasably securing the second slide rail in an extended position, forward of the first slide rail. The latch includes a catch member which is mounted to the first slide rail and a latch member which is mounted to the second slide rail. The catch member and the latch member are mounted such that the latch member is aligned with the catch member when the second slide rail is disposed in the extended position, and the latch member engages the catch member to releasably secure the second slide rail in the extended position. A rigid release member is slidably mounted to the second slide rail for moving in a lineal direction. The rigid release member extends from a forward portion of the second slide rail to an intermediate portion of the second slide that is disposed substantially adjacent to the latch member, such that movement of the release member in a forward direction retracts the latch member from engaging the catch member of the first slide rail. With the latch member retracted from the catch member, the second slide rail may be moved relative to the first slide rail, from the extended position to another position with respect to the first slide rail.